PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in Senate · Dec 10, 2015
Climate Protection and Justice Act of 2015
This bill amends the Clean Air Act to address greenhouse gas emissions. Specifically, the bill:
states as U.S. policy greenhouse gas emission targets for 2020, 2030, 2040, and 2050 that will result in reducing the emissions 80% below 1990 levels by 2050;
Showing the opening paragraphs of the official summary.
establishes a fee for manufacturing, producing, or importing certain carbon polluting substances (coal, petroleum, and natural gas) that increases over time;
establishes the Interagency Climate Council to evaluate whether the targets are being met;
requires the Environmental Protection Agency to issue regulations to ensure the targets are met if the council finds the targets are not being met;
requires those fees to be deposited in the Carbon Fee Rebate Fund established by this bill;
establishes the Carbon Fee Rebate Program, which will distribute proceeds from the fees to eligible U.S. residents;
establishes a Climate Justice Resiliency Grant Program to fund projects that mitigate climate impacts on communities that are unable to afford the management or mitigation of those impacts;
expands the definition of solid waste under the Clean Air Act and applies air pollution emission limits to those wastes; and
establishes a fee on carbon pollution-intensive goods imported into the United States, requires the fees to be deposited in the Carbon Equivalency Fee Fund established by this bill, and requires the fund to be used for certain purposes, including improving industrial energy efficiency.
The bill provides funding for the Weatherization Assistance Program, the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program, and the Rural Energy for America Program.
The bill revises the Food Security Act of 1985 by providing incentives for farmers to use no-till cultivation practices and sustainable fertilizer application practices.
The bill revises the Federal Power Act to enable access on the electric grid for demand response programs (programs that enable customers to reduce or shift their power use during peak demand periods).
People & committees
Sen. Sanders, Bernard [I-VT] · I–VT
Legislative record
A procedural vote is different from passage. Passage in one chamber does not establish enactment. Explore the glossary.
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
Introduced in Senate
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We currently store references to these documents.
No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Aug 12, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
AI Conversation Starters
Choose a perspective, copy a prompt, and paste it into your preferred AI. Each prompt includes the bill version and available official source links, and asks for counterarguments as well as supporting evidence.
Analyze S.2399 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.
Examine S.2399 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.
Examine S.2399 through a conservative lens, focusing on fiscal responsibility, institutional stability, federalism, and the scope of government. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and any provisions that challenge this perspective.
Examine S.2399 through a civil-liberties and limited-government lens. Consider individual rights, privacy, voluntary choice, accountability, and government power. Explain tradeoffs, possible safeguards, and the strongest counterarguments without assuming the proposal is beneficial or harmful.